Dist Civil Surgeon sets an example

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, July 22

Setting an example true to the Hippocratic Oath, newly appointed Civil Surgeon — Dr Navdeep Singh — performed a life-saving surgery on a 27-year-old female at Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs’ Memorial Civil Hospital on Tuesday.

This has come at a time, when there have been reports of a few Health Department employees trying to use their political or bureaucratic connections to avoid a Covid-19 related duty.

Otherwise, too, for Civil Surgeons and other senior Health Department officials, performing a clinical duty, including a surgery, is very rare. In the recent times, none of the other Civil Surgeons have performed such a duty in the district.

In 2017, Brahm Mohindra, the then Health Minister, had also instructed all Civil Surgeons and Senior Medical Officers posted on non-clinical posts to perform clinical duties every Saturday, besides performing scheduled surgeries in government hospitals on fixed days, but despite that, it failed to bring any change.

As a general norm, the Civil Surgeon and other senior health administration officials stay away from clinical duties claiming that they are over-occupied with administrative duties.

Sources in the Health Department reveal that Civil Surgeon Dr Navdeep Singh, a gynaecologist himself, along with a team of gynaecologists at Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs’ Memorial Civil Hospital saved the life of a young female patient by performing hysterectomy, a procedure to remove the uterus.

On the condition of anonymity, a Health Department employee said: “Even district programme officers do not perform clinical duties and a Civil Surgeon doing it is rare. Those who are trying to avoid duties due to Covid-19 scare have a lesson to learn.”

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